Love and Peace!
by MaskedScissorDoll
Summary: A Tenchi and Trigun Crossover, if Tenchi chose Sakuya... RyokoVash, WashuLegato. Thanks for your patience, guys! WIP!
1. Ryoko and Ayeka

A/N: Hi, everyone! I know this isn't something you don't already know, but… I don't own anything worth suing me for! I have nothing! Welllll… I do have some Chibis… And that Ryoko action figure… But… Nothing you want, anyway… Sooo… Finally, a Tenchi/Trigun Fanfiction! I am very excited! I love Trigun, and Tenchi! And, hopefully this will give me some public exposure… I'm a starving artist when it comes to attention… ::Sigh:: Anyway, this is set in a partial Tenchi in Tokyo Timeline (No Yugi, and no Hotsuma that I know of at this stage), but rather than Tenchi in Tokyo Ryoko, this is going to star Tenchi Universe Ryoko. She may talk about things that happen only in Tenchi Universe and Ryo'Ohki is hers. She is also going to react to things the way she would towards the end of Tenchi Universe… I'm making this harder than it is… Please Read and Review!

**__**

From Ryoko,

To the Universe, 

Love and Peace!

It was an average, if not normal, day at the Masaki residence. Tenchi was coming back from Tokyo today, and all of the girls were trembling with anticipation of his arrival. Sasami was busy in the kitchen, making the greatest feast of her lifetime, Mihoshi and Kyonai were on patrol, but they had promised to be home in time for dinner. As for Ryoko and Ayeka… They were bustling about, trying to get ready for tonight, the night they were certain Tenchi would finally chose between them.

Ayeka was in her room, hurriedly tying her sash, and whispering silent prayers for success. As she was spraying on a little perfume, she heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" She called, not bothering to look at the door.

"Princess?" She turned around, shocked. "Miss Ryoko! If you think I'm in the mood to-" Ryoko stopped her mid sentence. "No, Miss Ayeka… I just thought perhaps you are worried for the same reason I am," she winked. "Tonight will either make us or break us… And only one of us could be happy with the results." She paused, thoughtfully, "And I just want you to know, no matter what happens…" She fidgeted. "I don't want there to be any more hard feelings between us," She looked Ayeka in the eyes. "For Tenchi's sake." 

Ayeka looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yes, Ryoko… For once, you're right. If he doesn't chose me… I shall return to my duties on the planet Jurai… My people need me, and I don't want to make Tenchi unhappy… It's very kind of you, to try and bury the hatchet, as you have… Perhaps, I have misjudged you."

Ryoko smiled, "I'm glad to here you say that, Princess Ayeka. And if I'm not chosen, I'll leave too. To where…" She looked out the window and into the heavens. It was already dark outside, and the stars were shining brightly. A shooting star streaked across the sky. "I'm not sure. She pointed to a star, off to the east. "I'd like to see what things are like there, though. I've never been there before… It'd probably be a nice place to go to get away from things. Far… Far…" she trailed off. "Away from here…" She almost started to cry, but did not show it. "There are sooo many planets in that system… I've heard that some of them are beautiful, in their own way…"

It was then that Ayeka knew there was something she didn't know. Something only Ryoko knew. Ayeka was horrified at the very thought of it, but she felt she must know.

"Ryoko! Don't tell me there's a chance-"

Ryoko stopped her mid-sentence. "I don't know Ayeka… I really don't know." She turned, and walked away, leaving the stunned princess alone and totally incapable of muttering a single word.


	2. Ryoko and Washu

A./N : Wow, a whole hour and I still don't own Tenchi or Trigun… Oh, well, Jerusalem wasn't conquered in a day, you know. This chapter should go more into Ryoko's Emotions… I don't know, I'm just telling the story, okay!?!?

**__**

From Ryoko,

To the Universe,

Love and Peace!

Chapter two

Ryoko waited atop the roof. She gazed upward, into the stars… She recalled many times when she had done this, with Tenchi on one side, and Ryo'Ohki on the other. Even Ayeka was starting to feel like part of her family. But… This Sakuya was very bad news, and Ryoko knew it. _'When Tenchi comes home, he will not be alone…' _She wished she hadn't told Ayeka… But it was for the best. Ryoko didn't want her to get her hopes up. _"Poor optumistic Princess," _She sighed. Why did this Sakuya feel she must invade their lives? Why did Grandfather have ever have to send Tenchi to Tokyo, anyway? Fate was never kind to Ryoko.

"Why, Tenchi?" she asked the open air. There was no one she could talk to, just Ryo'Ohki and the stars… But there was one other person… "NEVER! I will never resort to getting advice from Little Washu!" She sighed. "It would be nice to talk to some one, though…"

The next thing Ryoko knew, she was in Washu's lab, spilling her heart out. "And I know what he'll say! Oh, mother, I don't know what I'm going to do!"

"Now, Little Ryoko, let's not over react. It's not as if you can be sure. Besides, even if HE doesn't love you, there are other men in this galaxy." She raised an eyebrow at her crying daughter.

"But… Mother… I love him… He's all I could want!" She gasped for breath, her tears slowing.

You'd think he would be, but…" she smiled, holding her daughter in suspense. "I didn't think the two of you were compatable, anyway!"

Ryoko burst into tears. "What are you talking about! He's perfect! How could you call yourself my mother?!?!"

Washu seemed unscathed. "Well, Ryoko, Dear… He's human, your… a part of me. He was eighteen. Your…" She calculated in her head for a moment, then gave up. "A lot older."

Ryoko sulked. "How dare you! And how am I going to find a guy in his hundreds… Let alone his seven hundreds?!?!"

Washu shook her head. "All things are possible. It's a big Universe, you know… How many planets do you think there are?"

"I don't know, but I do know I'd grow old looking through all of them!" Ryoko replied, none too happily.

"So you want to settle with the first one you find? You do know you would out live him, Don't you?" Washu tried to reason with her daughter.

Ryoko began sobbing freely now. Washu held her close and whispered to her. "I know Ryoko, but you've gotta hold up… It's not that hard. I'll help you, I promise…"


	3. Ryoko and the star

A/N: Well, It's been several monthes, and I still don't own Trigun or Tenchi. I have not a copywrite to my name, but I would apreaciate it if people would respect my work as if it were copywritten. Not that they don't already. ::pauses:: Not that anyone respects what is copy written. hmm.R/R! Also, If you happen to be one of the few that truely care, I have been unable to work on this or any other fanfiction of mine for about 6 monthes now, because my computer was undergoing a total rebuild. The fan blew out one night, and after that everything went bad, so I had write on paper for a while. I hope you enjoy these next few extra long chapters to make up for it.  
  
By the way, phraises marked in ::'s are telopathic comunications between Ryoko and Washu.  
From Ryoko, To the Universe, Love and Peace!  
  
Ryoko had apreciated Washu's advice, and for once, even apreciated Washu herself. She wondered how she had ever gotten along without her mother, the caring, sweet, childish redhead she was.  
  
"So, Mr. Best-in-the-Universe, give me a clue," She sighed, and stared up at the stars, "Where do I start?" As though it were the ansewer to her question, a distant star sort of shimered, giving of a glint more light. She squinted slightly, and then recognized it as the same one she pointed out to Ayeka earlier. Coincidence? She thought so but... "No harm in tring. Might even be fun, a little star search."  
  
It was then she glanced down at the ground and saw Tenchi coming up the path... With Sakuya. She was sort of half releived. She would have hated to have been wrong. She smiled, as she had already cried herself out, and dematerialized, reapearing in the kitchen.  
  
Sasami was as busy as she'd ever been, and everything smelled great. 'Better to tell her now...' Ryoko thought. "We'll be having one more tonight, Sasami."  
  
Sasami paused, suprized. "One more? Who could it be?"  
  
Unopertunely, it was then that they came in. Sasami was extatic to here Tenchi's voice in the hall, so much so that she ran out of the kitchen to great him. Ryoko could here her gasp of suprize all the way back in the kitchen.  
  
"SAKUYA?"  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It was a relatively quiet meal, comparatively. The tention was thick, and no one seemed to want to speak in more than four word sentinceses. The only ones up to there usual speed, were calm, rational Yoshio; Extatic, grandchild obsessed Father; And ignorant to her surroundings Mihoshi, whom Kyonai had a hard time restraining.  
  
It was, quite suprizingly, Ayeka who made the first anouncement. "Tenchi, I must tell you how greatfull I am to have been allowed to vacation here..."  
  
"Oh, you haven't been any trouble, Miss Ayeka!" It seemed very hard for Tenchi to speek. Ryoko suposed he felt bad for bypassing them all.  
  
"It was kind of you, just the same. But I'm afraid, Tenchi, that I cannot take advantage of your hospitality for another night. Sasami and I are returning to Juri, imediatly."  
  
Sasami looked rather shocked, but judging the situation, desided a slow nodd was the best reaction. She knew it wouldn't be much fun to stay once Tenchi had made his choice.  
  
Tenchi looked possitively aghast. "Are you certain Miss Ayeka? Must you leave tonight?"  
  
"My father has summoned us to return. He has a new selection of sutors for me..." She paused, tactfully. "He has told me that I may chose for myself, as long as I remain on Juri."  
  
Tenchi paled further. "Well, if this must be..." He sighed, "Miss Ayeka, I wish you only the best of luck."  
  
Ayeka's voice wavered only slightly, as she gave him a gentle, "to you as well."  
  
Ryoko could see Tenchi's eye water slightly, but she knew it was purely for their freindship.  
  
It was then Kyonai who spoke up. "Allow us to escort you home, Princess. It's time Mihoshi and I returned to the force."  
  
"Don't allow me to shorten your stay here, Kyonai. I can take care of myself." Ayeka seemed earnest in her concern. Mihoshi and Kyonai had been given a station on earth to look after things in the system.  
  
"No trouble, Princess. Mihoshi and I have been restationed to a new system. It seems there were some overlooked humanoid colonies in a distant quadrent. We pass Juri heading twoards there anyway." Kyonai gave a little smile, and held out her hand to seal the deal.  
  
"Well, Kyonai, thankyou. I appresiate the help. Do you mind leaving after dinner?" Ayeka asked.  
  
"Not at all." Kyonai stated. There was another stuffy silence for a moment, and then, Ryoko heard something the others did not.  
  
::Ryoko?::  
  
::Yes?::  
  
::Where did they say they were going?::  
  
::Some distant system with some colonies, why?::  
  
::Doesn't it sound like an adventure? An opertunity to escape, and at the same time, save face?::  
  
::Now that you mention it... But what's a good excuse?::  
  
::Science, my dear, science::  
  
Washu spoke, this time with her voice, to Kyonai. "Did you say that the inhabitants were humanoid?"  
  
"Yes, aparently they were involed in some sort of lapse in a paralle timeline." Kyonai seemed thoughtfull for a moment. "Of course, we haven't allowed them to know about our existance yet, but that's only because we know nothing about them. They could be warlike, and from the looks of their planet, they aren't very kind to the enviornment."  
  
"What humanoids are, outside of Juri?" She paused for a moment. "Tell me, do you think the gallaxy police would take on a pair of scientific voluntiers?"  
  
Kyonai raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Washu and I have talked it over, and we've desided to go to the system, and study it's people."  
  
Tenchi droped his glass. "Is that true, Ryoko? Are you leaving too?" He looked genuinely shocked. She would have payed a million dollars to see that again.  
  
" 'fraid so. Ryoh'Oaki and I have been feeling the pull of the stars again. It'll be good to be back in deep space." Taking Ayeka's example, she desided to make her intentions strike true. "I'm kind of hoping there's something more out there, something real. And who knows? This could be the same star I've been wishing on." 


	4. Ryoko and the Farewell Request

Here is the fourth installment in the series, which should be a little longer than the first two, but perhaps not as long as the previous one. Although this isn't the best chapter, I'm rather happy with this one. It really gets the plot moving. Again, I don't own anything, and all my respects to the holders of rights. Please ask me before doing anything wierd with my work, although I REALLY love a good MST. In fact, If you want to MST any of my stuff, let me read it! Also, for those of you who like MST's, I do MST's sometimes myself, and if you ever want me to MST your work, LET ME KNOW! My new addy is at Red_Letter_Webbing@comcast.net . Thanks!  
  
From Ryoko, To the Universe, Love and Peace!  
  
Ryoko's Wishing Star  
  
After dinner, Ryoko went up to her room to gather her things. Washu had given her a suitcase to put her things in. It now sat empty on her dresser. To be brutally honest, she didn't have much to pack. A tube of lipstick. A pair of heels. A little black dress. Her purse. And that was about it. No huge wardrobe, no massive nick-nack collection... Just those magic items... And a toothbrush. All that she needed. She didn't own anything else. Except... Gems. And a little red string tied around her little finger. It was times like this that made her wish she had a durable pair of scissors.  
  
But for the time being she could only worry about the gems, and that was a difficult task enough for anyone. She would have to ask Tenchi to give her back part of what kept her there all these months (How many had it been? Ryoko had once had an excellent sense of time, but nothing seemed to matter anymore.  
  
After having packed her few necessities, she faded from the room with her baggage and reappeared outside. There stood Tenchi and Sakuya, already watch Mihoshi and Kyonai load up their ship. Ryoko and Washu had agreed to travel alone together, aboard Ryoh'Oki, so their comings and goings scarcely mattered.  
  
"Tenchi..." Her whisper was so quite it was surprising he heard. He turned to face her instantly, as though he had been looking for an excuse. "I have a favor to ask you Tenchi."  
  
"Yes, Ryoko?" He sort of half smiled.  
  
"My gems. I might need them when I'm gone... I'd like them back." Ryoko couldn't look at him. If she had, she'd have felt the red string tug at her finger. "I know you trust me now... and it's time we all let go of some things."  
  
Tenchi's eyes watered slightly, and she could tell he was ready to cry. But not while she was watching. "So you're really leaving? I guess I can give these back. I know you wouldn't use them for evil purposes now." His answer so far had been mechanical, but now his voice cracked just a little. "Use them in good health... Best of luck to you."  
  
Ryoko was a little surprised it was so easy to retrieve something so valuable, but she didn't question him as she took them in her hand, and they sank into her wrists. "Thanks, you too... Both of you."  
  
It was about that time when Washu, Sasami, Ayeka, and Ryo'Ohki (In child form) appeared in the doorway, and within minuets, the long tearful good- byes were over and the ships were off.  
  
_________________________________________________________  
  
Once the Ryo'Ohki was boarded, Ryoko and Washu watched as earth became smaller and smaller, and they had soon left the solar system all together. Kyonai had given them directions, along with the necessary forms to fill out. The documentation forms were composed of about forty pages of essay length papers, each somewhat more complicated than the last. But this task would be comparatively small for Washu. She was, after all, "The Greatest Scientific genius in the universe." IF, that is, she felt like doing it.  
  
Washu seemed thoroughly intrigued by this strange new system. "According to the data, this system is centered around, not one, but THREE stars. It's no wonder the planets are manly deserts."  
  
"Which way is it?" Ryoko had been letting Ryo'Ohki do most of the navigating for her, but she always liked to know where she was going.  
  
Washu pointed to a star cluster in almost the direct path of the Ryo'Ohki. "We're headed to one of the smaller planets. It's the only inhabited planet for quite a way."  
  
Ryoko looked at the cluster, and turned her head a bit. It seemed very familiar...  
  
"My wishing star." she whispered, breathlessly. It stood out even more now that it was closer. She smiled secretively wondering if maybe, just maybe, there was more to this 'fate' stuff than she thought. 


	5. Vash and the Wishing Star

A/N: Sorry about the extended vacation. There are three reasons why I'm going to try and finish this fic this summer. 1.) Because of your wonderful reviews and persistent support, which I appreciate 2.) Because I have very little to do this summer but sell Avon and mess around on 3.) Because I heard a Carly Simon song today and she's my current Ryoko muse. If you're going to write for Ryoko, listen to Carly Simon. If you want updates from me, or if you want a soundtrack list for this fic (because I write with music playing) leave your E-mail address. I'm changing the name of the fic to Wishing Star next update, unless there are any objections.  
  
Ayeka fans, do not despair. I'm working on something special just for you, along the same lines. It's top secret right now, but let's just say it involves a character from the Final Fantasy series with good credentials. :)  
  
It was another sweltering night on the planet Gunsmoke. The kind of night Vash liked to be in a bar with a tall drink and a pretty lady. He'd been going to places of leisure less and less since his showdown with Knives. Something about it was so unsettling that it shook him up. It gave him a feeling he that he'd never get past it. Sure, he won. Big deal, it didn't undo any of the things he'd do to get where he was, it didn't undo anything Knives had done. He felt guilt. He felt responsibility. It troubled him so much that it put him beyond sleeping at night. It made him wish he had no dreams.  
  
There was good that had come out of it all. Knives promised never to hurt another person so long as he lived. This made Vash very happy. It was what he'd always wanted, since Rem had died. He wanted Knives at peace with the world around him. He wanted Knives to find security, happiness, and love. Most of all, he wanted mankind safe from his brother's wrath. Finally Knives was as harmless as he tried to be. Once, Vash thought that was what it would mean for him to be happy. After the fact, realization set in. Nothing had really changed. Vash was still alone, even when he was with Knives.  
  
Not that he was with Knives a lot. The insurance ladies had taken him into custody once it became clear he was the real threat. This made Vash a little sad. He really had hoped Meryl liked him for things other than the fact he was Vash the Stampede, humanoid typhoon. He wanted to be in love, he wanted to find someone that could take his memories of Rem away forever by bringing him new dreams to share. Thinking about it further, Vash found it was a pretty foolish aspiration to find a lover amongst the people of Gunsmoke. Vash was older and would continue to be older than any female being on the planet. Any love he might find would only last for a few years to him before she died and left his life again just as quickly as she had come in.  
  
Vash was realizing for the first time the futility of his own existence. So instead of finding sweet diversions, instead of seeking the company of the humans as Knives was learning to do, Vash started isolating himself as much as he could. He didn't want to stand back and watch Meryl and Millie waste away in front of him. He didn't want to become attached to someone who would only fade away again, just as Rem and Nick had. He wasn't interested in living in the moment when the future was so scary. He was going to be alone forever. Two words he never wanted to hear in one sentence. Alone forever.  
  
He looked to the stars for company, and on that night, he was gazing up, watching the memories unfold their silken waters to drown him for the night, when the air seemed pierced by a meteorite streaking fast across the sky. Suddenly his fears seemed to melt away, as if by some miracle this falling star made things seem a lot better. There was something about it...  
  
He decided to make a wish. He closed his eyes and said a silent prayer. If he had left them open, he would have seen the ship land not so far away.  
  
Washu was a very busy lady. She had a new project to work on; namely she needed to set up a base on a desert planet. The area where they had landed was no worse than any other spot, but that wasn't saying much. The ground wasn't good for the foundation of a building but Washu had her ways of making it work. Water wasn't much of a problem either, she thought of things like that before they left. A problem was the fact there weren't any signs of life or civilization for miles of where they planned to put the lab. That was a good thing for the sake of the villagers of the nearby towns, but it wasn't necessarily helpful for Washu's concealed motives.  
  
She wanted to help Ryoko. The little scientist had solved a lot of big problems in her lifetime. World hunger, power shortages, architectural anomalies, you name it, she's got a plan. Her own daughter, however, was a mystery to her. Part of it was the fact they had lost so many years when they could have been bonding, having good mother/daughter experiences... Another thing was that Ryoko had always been so darned independent! Washu had difficulty connecting with Ryoko even on a basic friendly level, let alone interacting in a mother daughter way.  
  
There were a million things Washu wanted to do for her daughter. She wanted to make life safe and perfect for her, she wanted things to be easier for her. This was, she knew, asking a bit much. There were things she could do though. One thing was, she wanted her daughter to meet new people. That'd be easy enough, if they were in a town. Living in a town just didn't seem like a safe idea, people tend to ask questions about people with blue hair.  
  
The idea she had come up with to solve the problem of attracting guests was to set up a bar. Yes, a bar. In the middle of the dessert. Believe it or not, this particular stretch of desert was popular for travelers to go through, so there would be a constant trickle of guests. That would give Ryoko the exposure she needed to meet people, and Washu the space and safety she needed for her lab. With very little effort, Washu and Ryoko had set up shop.  
  
"Now," she thought, "We wait." 


	6. Nowhere's Grotto

I promise, guys, I'm a changed authoress. I won't leave you hanging again if I can help it. ;)

And now, on with the fic!

So finally, Ryoko and Washu were settled into the little bar they'd set up in the middle of nowhere (Which they aptly named "Nowhere's Grotto"). For the first few weeks, business was slow. Really slow. The three customers kind of slow. Even so, they held on, and within about two months, word of mouth had gotten around that there was a pretty pair of barmaids and cold drinks to be had on a certain route through the desert. The two alien beings prospered. They were monstrously successful in the quenching of the thirsts of three scores of outlaws who continuously ran the trail through the area. The money from the water, beer, and snack food put together was quite an industry for two young women in the part of Gunsmoke they were in. And the best part was, it kept rolling in with very little trouble. Practically snowballing, in fact.

Both mother and daughter were extensively pleased with these developments. Ryoko, in all her days of robbery and plunder, had never seen such easy money. And it was actually kind of fun, standing behind a counter and talking to former wanted criminals about things she could understand. Although she never ran into anyone that impressed her unduly, she was really quite fond of some of the regulars. She almost considered Red Talks a friend.

What kind of outlaw name is Red Talks? The kind of name you give someone who's killed. Blood talks. You could see it in his face. He still seemed to radiate the personality of someone who didn't want to be in the smuggling business, still had the dreams everyone had, still harped on about meeting a nice girl and starting a family somewhere. But he wasn't your typical green idiot. His hands were far from clean. Even when he did good, even when he was happy, his thoughts would wander back to the blood on his hands, the innocents who'd gotten in his way. Ryoko didn't sympathize with him. She empathized with him. She knew exactly how he felt, and although they didn't talk about those kinds of things much, they had an unspoken understanding of each other, the kind you don't talk about, the kind you read on the face of an old friend that's been where angels fear to tread and back with you. Red Talks was probably the closest thing she'd ever had to a friend of the human persuasion, and over coffee they shared a morbid sort of accord most Tuesdays and some Thursdays.

On Sundays, she had customers like Jack Smolt, who was a deeply religious man over his whiskey. On Wednesdays Ryoko could rely on trouble from Mac Bryant and his men, who either left drunk or with a grudge against someone new. Fridays were good for Mike and Sam Ravie, who were honest merchants who traveled with deliveries from one town to another, and after dropping off the goods stopped for cold water and a sandwich at the bar (Sam liked corn beef and sauerkraut). And Saturdays, unless something urgent came up with Red or one of the other reliable customers, the bar was closed.

Saturday was a day for Ryoko to rest. She usually slept most of the day, and what part she didn't sleep, she wandered around the grounds of Nowhere's Grotto and asked herself questions with no answers. These questions filled up the part of her life that use to be full of alcohol. But, then alcohol and filled up the part of her life where Tenchi use to be and the part of her life in which she looted and plundered. It was actually not a bad trade. Problem was, the questions didn't go away. And they were bothersome questions. They were questions like: Why am I here? Did I honestly think this place was worth my time more than Earth was? She had to admit, though... Gunsmoke was a thousand times more homey to her than Earth had been. People around were more her kind of people. Sure, they didn't have the Mafia, but all the men were cowboys, and that pretty much made up for it. All this world really lacked was a decent love interest, and she would be pretty happy there.

Washu was also fairly satisfied with Gunsmoke, especially on a Saturday afternoon. On a Saturday afternoon, Washu could stroll about the property as she liked, explore parts of the planet that struck her as interesting, and work on her top secret projects. The most recent one of which Ryoko was completely unaware, was the fact that Washu had found a man in the desert. He was alive, but only on his own will. A strange man with blue hair. Washu had him hooked up down in her lab, taking his vital signs, trying to give him a proper boost. She came to the conclusion that with her direction, the strange man would live. She looked into the glass tank she'd designed for his purposes, and looked at him. He was quite possibly the most handsome man she'd ever seen. He was human, but somehow also not. Some mysterious aura hung over him, some glow that made the lights of the lab seem dimmer. And that was before he'd opened his eyes. He was, Washu decided, definitely worth keeping around.

Vash was wandering around in circles. He knew perfectly well he was doing it, he was doing it intentionally. He was trying to loose himself somehow in the landscape of nothingness that surrounded him. As impossible as it seemed, he held onto hope that if he kept walking, eventually he would be incapable of going any further and die. He'd gotten this brilliant idea about two weeks ago. Trouble was, he still knew where he was, and he didn't feel any weaker. He almost sank to his knees in the sand in frustration, but he kept his cool. He was finally coming to terms with it. He couldn't let himself die, and he wouldn't die on his own in a time orderly fashion. The only thing he could think to do was to face his fears and enjoy himself. That was risky business for a man like Vash the Stampede (or as some misprint wanted posters touted, Vash the Stampede) who had a price on his head. Still, he needed to be able to face down the faces of human beings as more than just those destined to die.

Misery loves company, and Vash was miserable. Also, he was hungry, tired, and in need of a tall drink and a pretty girl. He needed to start enjoying his life again, he needed to start showing the world he was capable of dealing with the consequences of loving mortal beings. Rem would not approve of him hiding in the desert all his life, and Wolfwood wouldn't approve of him failing to live.

As he made his way into Nowhere's Grotto, he wondered exactly when it had been built, and why he hadn't noticed it before. It looked polished and new, as if it had been opened yesterday, but that couldn't be so. He'd been by this way as little as a week ago. Besides all of that, who in their right mind would run a bar in the middle of the desert?

He entered as casual as was possible for Vash the Stampede, the humanoid typhoon, and sat down at the bar. He looked up at the bartender and opened his mouth to speak. Then he closed it. Then he opened it again. He couldn't do much more than gasp and ogle at her! He'd never seen anything like her in his life! The thing that struck him dumb at first was that she had the biggest, most catlike eyes he had ever seen. Bright and yellow like the moon, watching him with an expression he could only take to be boredom and nonchalance, they dazzled him. They pushed him into almost coma like inability to interact, which was a big deal for him. He always had something to say to a girl, even if it was a cheap line. This, this was different. There's such thing as a level playing field, but Vash found that she'd pushed that theory right off the table. She was both gorgeous, and from her level of patience as he stammered into and out of reality, she was very intellegent. He was, in one word, smitten.

It didn't help that the rest of her was beautiful. Cyan hair, if you've ever heard of it! Spikey and long at once, shaping her face into a sharp excellence that he was unaware of up until that moment. Low, and behold! There was such a thing as perfection. Not to mention her shape. He could tell she was tall from the way she stood over the bar, and he could help but be a little intimidated by that. If he wasn't nervous enough, she cleared her throat.

"Excuse me, are you going to order something?" Beautiful. Musical. He swallowed. All his previous worries were forgotten, all thoughts of plants and people and knives and the bounty on his head flew from his mind. The only thing he had to worry about now was the most impressive drink on the menu, and how to get her to notice him.


End file.
